Exchange ActiveSync is a Microsoft Exchange synchronization protocol that's optimized to work together with high-latency and low-bandwidth networks. The protocol, based on HTTP and XML, lets mobile phones access an organization's information on a server that's running Microsoft Exchange. Exchange ActiveSync enables mobile phone users to access their email, calendar, contacts, and tasks, and to continue to access this information while they're working offline.

Important:

Windows Phone 7 mobile phones support only a subset of all Exchange ActiveSync mailbox policy settings. For a complete list, see Windows Phone 7 Synchronization.

You can control which mobile devices can synchronize. You do this by monitoring new mobile devices as they connect to your organization or by setting up rules that determine which types of mobile devices are allowed to connect. Regardless of the method you choose to specify which mobile devices can synchronize, you can approve or deny access for any specific mobile device for a specific user at any time

In addition to the ability to configure security options for communications between the Exchange server and your mobile devices, Exchange ActiveSync offers the following features to enhance the security of mobile devices:

Remote wipe If a mobile device is lost, stolen, or otherwise compromised, you can issue a remote wipe command from the Exchange Server computer or from any Web browser by using Outlook Web App. This command erases all data from the mobile device.

The iOS7 fingerprint reader technology cannot be used as a device password. If you choose to use the iOS7 fingerprint reader, you’ll still need to create and enter a device password if the mobile device mailbox policy for your organization requires a device password.

The device password options include the following:

Minimum password length (characters) This option specifies the length of the password for the mobile device. The default length is 4 characters, but as many as 18 can be included.

Minimum number of character sets Use this text box to specify the complexity of the alphanumeric password and force users to use a number of different sets of characters from among the following: lowercase letters, uppercase letters, symbols, and numbers.

Require alphanumeric password This option determines password strength. You can enforce the usage of a character or symbol in the password in addition to numbers.

Inactivity time (seconds) This option determines how long the mobile device must be inactive before the user is prompted for a password to unlock the mobile device.

Enforce password history Select this check box to force the mobile phone to prevent the user from reusing their previous passwords. The number that you set determines the number of past passwords that the user won't be allowed to reuse.

Enable password recovery Select this check box to enable password recovery for the mobile device. Administrators can use the Get-ActiveSyncDeviceStatistics cmdlet to look up the user's recovery password.

Wipe device after failed (attempts) This option lets you specify whether you want the phone's memory to be wiped after multiple failed password attempts.

Device encryption policies There are a number of mobile device encryption policies that you can enforce for a group of users. These policies include the following:

Require encryption on device Select this check box to require encryption on the mobile device. This increases security by encrypting all information on the mobile device.

Require encryption on storage cards Select this check box to require encryption on the mobile device’s removable storage card. This increases security by encrypting all information on the storage cards for the mobile device.

If you have Windows Phone 7 mobile devices in your organization, these devices will experience synchronization problems if certain Mobile Device mailbox policy properties are configured. To allow Windows Phone 7 mobile phones to synchronize with an Exchange mailbox, either set the AllowNonProvisionableDevices property to true or configure only the following Mobile Device mailbox policy properties: